Relative: Worker who died in sewer worried about hazards of job

Chicago firefighters work around an access point to the sewer at the intersection of Rockwell Street and Elston and Wellington Avenues in Chicago. The intersection is downstream from a point in the 3000 block of N. Rockwell St. where a worker was trapped during flash flooding caused by a strong thunderstorm. (John J. Kim, Chicago Tribune)

Gustavo Briceno woke up Wednesday morning feeling something bad was about to happen, according to his family.

That night, Briceno was doing maintenance in a sewer when heavy rains sent a surge of water down the pipe where he was working and swept him away. He was found dead about two hours later, his body carried about a block away.

“He loved his job, but he said that he worried something would happen to him,” said his sister-in-law, Imelda Alanis, 31. “He always said his workers would come up first in an emergency and he would come up last.”

Briceno, 25, and another worker were inside the sewer in the 3000 block of North Rockwell Street when the area was hit by flash floods around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, authorities said.

Briceno, employed by Kenny Construction, had removed his harness to reach a confined space and was carried away by the rushing water, according to police officials at the scene. The other worker was strapped into his harness and was pulled to safety, the officials said.

A police officer summoned help after driving by and seiing a frantic scene at an opening to the sewer, authorities said.

A robotic camera was lowered to help crews find Briceno. Officials also requested help from the Chicago Police Department's helicopter and marine units, which searched the Chicago River near the end of the sewer.

“The contractor had the camera going both ways to see if we could find him faster and maybe make this a rescue instead of a recovery," said Michael Fox, chief of special operations for the Chicago Fire Department. "But it didn’t turn out.”

Briceno's body was recovered about two hours later near Barry Avenue and Rockwell Street, about a block north of where he had been working. He was wearing a wetsuit, a Fire Department spokesman said.

The area where Briceno had been working was about 30 inches in diameter, according to Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford. “So it’s considered a confined space,” he said.

Briceno's team was working on an ongoing city project to line an old sewer to preserve its integrity, Water Management Department spokesman Tom LaPorte said.

Briceno's employer released a statement Thursday about his death.

"We are deeply saddened by the loss of one of our co-workers last night. Gustavo Briceno, Jr. was a valued member of our team," said Kenny Construction spokeswoman Jacque Fourchy. "We are working cooperatively with authorities on the investigation. Our focus right now is on supporting Gustavo's family, his friends and all of our employees who have been affected."

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration said it is investigating the incident. OSHA has inspected Kenny Construction several times since the company was cited and fined $175,000 for three deaths during a six-month period from 1996 to 1997, OSHA spokesman Scott Allen said. Since then, the company has been cited only for minor violations, he said.

"I would put them in pretty good standing with OSHA in the past 10 years," Allen said.

Briceno lived with his wife and three children, ages 3, 4 and 8, in Glendale Heights. He walked his children to school every morning and would take them to the library often, Alanis said.

"He was a really friendly guy, and he has a lot of friends," she said.